Wetlands Studies and Studio Painting

I painted "en plein air" recently with Bill Sharp, a talented Portland painter, and produced a little study, with the intent on "pushing color," exaggerating the intensity of what I was seeing.

Wetlands Study, 8 x 10 oil on linen board

The painting location is in a Beaverton neighborhood, where a protected wetlands winds its way through backyards (I envy the homeowners the views of the flora and fauna just outside their windows). I brought the painting home and decided to use the color notes I captured to design a new painting with a different format, (this time a 2:1 aspect ratio, one of my favorites). I first painted another small color study:

Wetlands Study 2, 6 x 12 oil on panel

I then started a 12 x 24 painting on linen that I had mounted on board and toned with a light, very warm wash, laying in the initial placement of major shapes:

 

I then added my lightest lights (sky area) so that I could see the range of tones I was working with:

It was at this point that I made a compositional change, removing the tree near the center because I felt blocked from the marshes beyond that were calling to me. The final product brought me back to my initial goal of experimenting with exaggerated color:

Wetlands Morning, 12 x 24 oil on linen on board